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A4 U.S. NEWS
Tuesday 18 OcTOber 2022
U.S. government tells Arizona to remove border containers

By ANITA SNOW has made a few excep-
Associated Press tions for small projects at
PHOENIX (AP) — The fed- areas deemed unsafe for
eral government is de- people to cross, including
manding the state remove the gaps near Yuma.
double-stacked shipping The quibble over the con-
containers placed to fill tainers close to Yuma un-
gaps in the wall along the derscores the obstacles
U.S.-Mexico border, saying faced when construct-
they are unauthorized and ing barriers on the south-
violate U.S. law. ern U.S. border. Building
The Cocopah Indian Tribe on tribal land, including in
in southwestern Arizona the Tohono O’odham Na-
welcomed the call to take tion in Arizona, can face
down the containers in opposition. Landowners,
the latest rift between the especially in Texas, where
Biden administration and much property is privately
Republican-led border owned, also can refuse to
states over how to prevent sign off on construction.
illegal border crossings. Ducey, like fellow Repub-
The Bureau of Reclama- lican Gov. Greg Abbott of
tion also demanded in last Texas, has often sparred
week’s letter that no new Border Patrol agents patrol along a line of shipping containers stacked near the border on Aug. with the Democratic ad-
containers be placed. It 23, 2022, near Yuma, Ariz. ministration over immigra-
said the bureau wants to Associated Press tion policies. Both states in
prevent conflicts with two recent months have been
federal contracts that cey’s office, but it said in “Beyond that, we will con- ing through the Cocopah offering free bus rides to
have been awarded and the past it would remove tinue working side-by-side Indian Reservation. the East Coast for asylum
two more still pending to fill the containers if the U.S. with local, state and fed- The border wall promoted seekers who are released in
border wall gaps near the government starts con- eral law enforcement on by former President Donald the United States to pursue
Morelos Dam in the Yuma, struction to fill the gaps. securing the border.” Trump continues to be a their cases.
Arizona, area. The tribe complained last Ducey ordered installation potent issue for Republican Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis
“The unauthorized place- month that the state of of more than 100 double- politicians hoping to show has arranged private flights
ment of those containers Arizona acted against its stacked containers that their support for border se- of Venezuelans from San
constitutes a violation of wishes by placing 42 of the were placed over the sum- curity. Antonio, Texas to Martha’s
federal law and is a tres- double stacks on its land mer, saying he couldn’t President Joe Biden halted Vineyard, Massachusetts.
pass against the United near Yuma to halt illegal wait for the U.S. Customs wall construction his first “Arizona did the job the
States,” the letter states. border crossings in an area and Border Protection to day in office, leaving bil- federal government has
“That trespass is harming that has become a major award the contracts it had lions of dollars of work un- failed to do and we
federal lands and resourc- entry point for migrants. announced for work to fill finished but still under con- showed them just how
es and impeding Reclama- “We believe the Bureau is the gaps in the border wall tract. Trump worked at the quickly and efficiently the
tion’s ability to perform its taking the necessary and in the Yuma area. end of his term to reach border can be made more
mission.” appropriate action to re- Migrants nevertheless have more than 450 miles (720 ki- secure if you want to,” Du-
There was no immediate solve this issue,” the Co- continued to avoid the re- lometers), nearly a quarter cey said when the contain-
response Monday from Re- copah tribe said in a state- cently erected barriers by of the border. ers were installed in south-
publican Gov. Doug Du- ment distributed Monday. going around them, includ- The Biden administration ern Arizona.q

Kansas to search grounds of former Native American school

FAIRWAY, Kan. (AP) — The in the 1800s and 1900s. placed in such schools, The U.S. Interior Depart- “We have requested for-
grounds of a former Native Thousands of Native Ameri- with a goal of assimilating ment announced last year mal consultation to address
American boarding school can children were forcibly them into white American that it was investigating serious concerns about the
in Kansas will be searched taken from their homes and culture and Christianity. the nation’s treatment of motives of this project, po-

to determined if any Indig- Native American children tential deficiencies in the
enous children were buried at the boarding schools. A process that may render
there, state officials said. federal report released in incomplete findings, and
The Kansas Historical So- May identified more than what plans may be for uti-
ciety, which owns the site 500 student deaths at the lizing any results from the
in Fairway, is contracting institutions, but officials said project,” the tribe said.
with the University of Kan- that figure was expected Patrick Zollner, executive
sas Center for Research to to grow into the thousands director of the historical so-
conduct a ground-pene- as research continues. ciety, responded that the
trating radar survey of the Leaders of the Shawnee Shawnee Tribe was the “first
12 acres (nearly 5 hectares) Tribe and other tribes had to know” about the project
to search for unmarked requested a search of the proposal.
graves, The Kansas City Star Fairway site. But tribal of- He said the society also
reported. The current Shaw- ficials said in a statement contacted other tribes,
nee Indian Mission historical that they were not con- including the Cheyenne
site was one of hundreds of This undated photo shows the Shawnee Indian Mission in sulted about the Historical and Arapaho tribes, Kaw
schools run by the govern- Fairway, Kan. Society’s project proposal Nation, Osage Nation and
ment and religious groups Associated Press before it was announced. others. q